Exactly. A little more grit would be nice, but Clarky will be too expensive (my guess is around 4.5m) and Clowe...I don't know. Rumors were he wanted a 6-8y contract in San Jose...

I'm a big fan of the idea bringing Gorgon in. Reliable faceoff guy, righty...would be a solid replacement for Halpern.

We could use one or two gritty players, we don't need to exchange the entire team for goons. Our team is successful with the style they play. Bring in a defenceman and a 4th liner with size/physicality and we should be just fine. Two more guys than we have this year.

clarkson would be too expensive, clowe can't skate and bieksa is hurt all the time. i would trade dd for bickell but i doubt the hawks would do that.

you guys are so obsessed with size and grit. chicago has the least hits in the nhl, and they still somehow managed to win the president trophy.

Our skilled guys would be even better with more grit around them. Bickell is a FA. We don't need a soft Ryder so we can afford Clarkson or Clowe. I'd be happy with Bickell and Clarkson. I really liked our 4th line tonight as they played the body and had scoring chances. Gordon would be okay. need more out of Bourque, Gionta and Patches.

Yup , he'a goal is to survive in the NHL.With Coloraro weak roster he can play 82 games a season .i doubt he can play a whole season in mtl , he would be a healthy scratch .

As he should be. He's 13th forward material. We only would need him for divisional games vs the Leafs, Sabres, Bruins and Sens. Only to counteract their attempts to run our players too. Maybe the Flyers also. Gooning it up doesn't win games, as the Leafs found out yesterday.

Our skilled guys would be even better with more grit around them. Bickell is a FA. We don't need a soft Ryder so we can afford Clarkson or Clowe. I'd be happy with Bickell and Clarkson. I really liked our 4th line tonight as they played the body and had scoring chances. Gordon would be okay. need more out of Bourque, Gionta and Patches.

wow, i thought bickell is younger... he is ufa already. could be a nice pickup.

Bordeleau cant play hockey. Both Jared Boll and Ryan Reaves have a year to go on their contracts with Columbus and the Blues, but both can play about 8-10 minutes without hurting their team , can hit and fight, they are nasty guys. Don't know how much theyd cost, Boll seems popular in Columbus, but worth checking out.

I don't understand the infatuation about Bordeleau. Why? Because he's French? The guy can't play hockey and that's why he is a late bloomer and averages 5 minutes a game!

I'd rather have another Prust-type of player, personally, perhaps a bit bigger.

30 teams in the NHL would want a bigger "Prust-type" player on the 4th line We need names dude, cause they don't grow on trees.

BTW I see no problem whatsoever in adding a fighting specialist like Bordeleau. We have 3 solid balanced lines and a bunch of players who are able to play on the PK including Prust and whoever is centering the 4th line.

Bordeleau cant play hockey. Both Jared Boll and Ryan Reaves have a year to go on their contracts with Columbus and the Blues, but both can play about 8-10 minutes without hurting their team , can hit and fight, they are nasty guys. Don't know how much theyd cost, Boll seems popular in Columbus, but worth checking out.

So Reaves can play but Bordeleau can't? They are very similar in term of hockey skill sir

So Reaves can play but Bordeleau can't? They are very similar in term of hockey skill sir

Reaves isn't exactly great by any means, and neither have any experience on the PK, but Reaves actually isn't sheltered nearly the same way Bordeleau is. And yet he wasn't as dominated as Bordeleau was out there.

Part of that is the Blues system, but the Avs being horrible is the only reason Bordeleau got even 6 minutes a game.

Reaves isn't exactly great by any means, and neither have any experience on the PK, but Reaves actually isn't sheltered nearly the same way Bordeleau is. And yet he wasn't as dominated as Bordeleau was out there.

Part of that is the Blues system, but the Avs being horrible is the only reason Bordeleau got even 6 minutes a game.

After going to the game in Winnipeg and then watching the Toronto game it seems like the #1 need at forward is a winger for Pleks. Desharnais looked better with Bourque and Pacioretty on his wings while the Eller line really looked solid.

Pleks is stuck with two one-dimensional players. Gionta works hard and I would still keep him for another year but he doesn't use his linemates very well. I had forgotten how one-dimensional Ryder is and when that dimension isn't working, he is brutal.

If I could get a guy like Viktor Stalberg, to play on the left side with Pleks I would be all over it. The guy is a great skater so that skill set figures into what the team is trying to do, he has great size at 6'3 and 210 pounds and he is probably good to chip in 15 - 20 goals.

Chicago will be in cap trouble and probably won't be able to offer Stalberg fair market value unless they make some other significant changes. Maybe when Bergevin traded for Ryder, knowing he was coming off contract, he had Stalberg in the back of his mind. After working in the the Chicago system he would know Stalberg's skill set and personality well.

On defense, the return of Emelin and the continued development of Tinordi changes the picture a lot. It finally gives us two physical defensemen. I would like to see Bergevin add one more, even if he was a #7 guy and a veteran. I think there would be quite a few guys to choose from in the free agent pool for that role. If the the team was going to carry eight defensemen like they did this year, I would re-sign Drewiske for that role.

Existing players who might be fighting for a role are Armstrong and Moen. Even though he is smaller than Armstrong, I think Dumont is more than capable of taking his spot. He is faster, more versatile, has more offensive talent and is just as physical. I think Moen is in a battle with White for a spot. White is younger, he can play center and comes at a lower price. I could see Moen headed to a place like Edmonton where they are looking for a veteran presence or Calgary where they could use some size.

After going to the game in Winnipeg and then watching the Toronto game it seems like the #1 need at forward is a winger for Pleks. Desharnais looked better with Bourque and Pacioretty on his wings while the Eller line really looked solid.

Pleks is stuck with two one-dimensional players. Gionta works hard and I would still keep him for another year but he doesn't use his linemates very well. I had forgotten how one-dimensional Ryder is and when that dimension isn't working, he is brutal.

If I could get a guy like Viktor Stalberg, to play on the left side with Pleks I would be all over it. The guy is a great skater so that skill set figures into what the team is trying to do, he has great size at 6'3 and 210 pounds and he is probably good to chip in 15 - 20 goals.

Chicago will be in cap trouble and probably won't be able to offer Stalberg fair market value unless they make some other significant changes. Maybe when Bergevin traded for Ryder, knowing he was coming off contract, he had Stalberg in the back of his mind. After working in the the Chicago system he would know Stalberg's skill set and personality well.

On defense, the return of Emelin and the continued development of Tinordi changes the picture a lot. It finally gives us two physical defensemen. I would like to see Bergevin add one more, even if he was a #7 guy and a veteran. I think there would be quite a few guys to choose from in the free agent pool for that role. If the the team was going to carry eight defensemen like they did this year, I would re-sign Drewiske for that role.

Existing players who might be fighting for a role are Armstrong and Moen. Even though he is smaller than Armstrong, I think Dumont is more than capable of taking his spot. He is faster, more versatile, has more offensive talent and is just as physical. I think Moen is in a battle with White for a spot. White is younger, he can play center and comes at a lower price. I could see Moen headed to a place like Edmonton where they are looking for a veteran presence or Calgary where they could use some size.

I am all for bringing in Stalberg, I think most of us can agree he'd be a good addition to the team.

I'm not so sure if I agree with Tinordi being in the lineup for next year. He's been good but he's still pretty unsure with the puck and I think he'd really benefit from another year of split AHL/NHL duties. He's going to be a great player but I don't think his development would handle being played full time in the NHL very well.

I'd love to see Dumont in the lineup full time, I can see him playing as a 3rd liner in the future. As you said, he's got good offensive talent but plays quite physically. Unless Armstrong's presence in the room makes him to important to move, Dumont has his spot all but taken.

I think there's the possibility White isn't back with the team next year. He's played himself into some pretty bad situations this year, not sure if he's got a spot on the roster.

So, with my only objections being Tinordi and White, the roster you outlined would look something like this:

Moen and White (RFA) in a package to Edmonton? Perhaps get another early 2nd/3rd?

Nystrom would be a player I'd target in Free Agency, potentially Ryan O'Byrne as well to keep from rushing Tinordi. At this stage in Tinordi's development, O'Byrne would bring a very similar impact. I don't know how popular the idea would be but Anthony Stewart is a UFA, 6'03 230lbs. He hits just about anything and is a very strong net presence, from La Salle Quebec.

I am all for bringing in Stalberg, I think most of us can agree he'd be a good addition to the team.

I'm not so sure if I agree with Tinordi being in the lineup for next year. He's been good but he's still pretty unsure with the puck and I think he'd really benefit from another year of split AHL/NHL duties. He's going to be a great player but I don't think his development would handle being played full time in the NHL very well.

I'd love to see Dumont in the lineup full time, I can see him playing as a 3rd liner in the future. As you said, he's got good offensive talent but plays quite physically. Unless Armstrong's presence in the room makes him to important to move, Dumont has his spot all but taken.

I think there's the possibility White isn't back with the team next year. He's played himself into some pretty bad situations this year, not sure if he's got a spot on the roster.

So, with my only objections being Tinordi and White, the roster you outlined would look something like this:

Moen and White (RFA) in a package to Edmonton? Perhaps get another early 2nd/3rd?

Nystrom would be a player I'd target in Free Agency, potentially Ryan O'Byrne as well to keep from rushing Tinordi. At this stage in Tinordi's development, O'Byrne would bring a very similar impact. I don't know how popular the idea would be but Anthony Stewart is a UFA, 6'03 230lbs. He hits just about anything and is a very strong net presence, from La Salle Quebec.

Tinordi is already better than O'Byrne. Get rid of Gionta and Bourque and add Bickell and Clarkson or Clowe.